Huge relief as Sassa saga ends well

Many South Africans would have been relieved that the uncertainty around the payment of social grants is finally over.

Minister in the Presidency, Jeff Radebe, announced on Sunday that the SA Social Security Agency and the SA Post Office had reached an agreement in terms of which the latter would take over the payment of social grants early next year.

You might have thought it was a no-brainer to get a state-owned agency, the Post Office to take over the responsibility of paying social grants to millions of beneficiaries.

Not so, as events of the past few months have proved.

It took protracted court action by nongovernmental organisation, Black Sash, to end a social grants payment contract between private company Cash Paymaster Services and Department of Social Development’s and its agency, the SA Social Security Agency, on the other.

For some inexplicable reason which one can only speculate about, the Minister of Social Development, Bathabile Dlamini, seemed to favour the continuation of the CPS contract, and appeared to play an obstructionist role in negotiations to facilitate the post office’s take-over of the contract.

Dlamini made the whole thing sound like rocket science, and a breakthrough only became possible when Radebe was appointed to oversee the talks.

Dlamini’s apparent reluctance was all the more strange as it appeared to favour a private company, CPS, over a state-owned one, the Post Office. Very odd, given that the ruling party is big on talk of building state capacity to take over many areas of public life.

Post Office CEO Mark Barnes put it best when he told Sowetan that the agreement meant a “crucial capacity would be built within the state”.

“My contention has always been that the paying of social grants is a government service, not a business.”

We couldn’t agree more. Given the inexplicable behaviour of the Department of Social Development and its agency Sassa over the past months, it is crucial that Radebe and members of parliament who ensured that this agreement was reached, remain engaged until the implementation of the contract takes place.

The country can’t afford last minute surprises.